Dr. Mike Murphy
February 12, 2023
“I am guilty, and pray I am found as the guiltiest man in this room!” As the words came from his mouth, the only thing that could be heard louder than the gavel were the sighs that filled the courtroom. He watched as shock was seen in the faces of the jurists, and he could hear the murmurs of disbelief that now filled the court.
He never would have thought he would have found himself on trial. He had lived a simple life. He had married his high school sweetheart, and they had been happily married for over twenty-three years now. He had worked at the same job after completing college for almost as long as he had been married. He had raised a family with three kids, two they were now starting their own life as they were away at college themselves. For years his life had revolved around his kids. Between dance recitals and baseball games, he never had time to give anything else a second thought. And that was exactly how he wanted it. His biggest fear had always been making sure the kids always had everything they needed, and providing them with every opportunity he could give them. His life was a series of routines. Or so he thought! On a faithfully day, almost two and a half years earlier, he would meet One who would forever change his life!
His brother had always been the rambunctious type. A man who had no patience, who was always looking for the next adventure. A man who was quick to tell you what he thought, and did not care what your opinion was. He was always rough and crude, never giving a second thought to anyone but himself. One Saturday, his brother surprisingly dropped by to see him. As he looked into his brothers eyes, he could see that something was different. There was a peace and a calm in his eyes that had never been seen before. As his brother sat down to talk to him, he told him just how much his life had changed. As his brother spoke, he could hear a compassion in his voice, and for the first time, he could see a comforting smile on his face.
“What has been going on in your life? Have you meet a woman who has calmed you down?”, he jokingly asked of his brother. His brother answered, “No, but I have found a love, and I have meet One who has touched me like I never thought I could be touched!” As he finished the words, he watched as his brother reached a book over to him. “A Bible? What is this for?”, he asked his brother. It had been years since he had held one, almost as long since he had seen one. Their parents house had several, and they would watch each night as his mom would read from it. But in the years since, the Bible had all but been forgotten. Just another book that filled the shelves of the local library, for nothing more than collecting dust. Society had moved on from it, and no longer saw a need for it. Society did not need a book that restricted them, or a way that showed them how they should live. They no longer needed to believe in a God, science and life provided them with all the answers they would ever need.
But as his brother placed the Bible in his hand, he placed a bookmark at the start of the Book of John. “Just read John, and I can promise that you will see exactly what has changed me. I will be praying for you, and with each word you read may the Lord fill you with the same peace and love He has shown me.”
The rest of the day, he never gave the Bible his brother had given him a second thought. He already was a good man, what did he need with God? What possible change could help his life? But as night fell, he noticed the Bible again, and remember that he had agreed to at least read a little. As the house grew quiet, he sat down and began to read. And with each night, he found himself reading a little more. He soon found himself with more questions than he had answers. And without realizing it, he found himself each day thinking about what he had read the night before.
Without him even realizing it, the day had come when he found himself talking to God. Asking the Lord questions about the words he was reading. Each question seemed to lead him to another question about his life, and all he thought he knew. And each answer seemed to lead him one step closer to the Answer. As he talked out loud to God one night, he realized that his ‘talks’ were actually prayers. It was during his prayer that night that he asked Christ into his life. He asked Christ to fill his life, to fill him with the answers to questions he had not yet asked. To not let him live as just a good man, but a man filled with the peace and hope that only salvation and grace could bring. He asked the Lord that night to place the smile on his face he had seen on the face of his brother. And he asked the Lord that night for others to be able to see in him the peace and comfort that could only be found in that smile.
As the days turned to weeks, and the weeks turned to months, he found the Bible in his hand more times than he found that hand empty. With each word, his eyes were opened a little wider, and his thoughts became a little clearer. The words of Proverbs 16:25, began to make sense. The ways of man is not the ways of God. He began to see that God’s ways were proven, and He gave us those ways not to restrict us, but because of His love for us. A love so abound that it could not stand to see us mired in the destruction the sin of this world would bring.
With each verse read, he realized that he could not contain the words within him. They were bursting to get out, to be shared with all those around him. He wanted the world to know the truth the Lord had presented to him. The love that the Lord had given him. And the hope that only Christ could offer him. Soon he found himself telling everyone around him of that truth, of that love, and of that hope. But the more he spoke, the more the people ignored him, and the more society shunned him. They simply did not wish to hear the truth, as the truth would lead them down a different path than the one they were walking on. A path he could no longer walk, because he had been shown where that path would lead. But it was a path that society was ready to force him to walk. A path that led him to the court he found himself in that day.
“So you admit that you are a Christian?”, the prosecutor asked. “Yes, I am a follower of Christ.”, he answered. “So you openly admit to the hateful words you speak?”. the prosecutor followed. “I admit to telling anyone who would listen the truth, but a truth that is filled with love, not hate. To be a Christian would not lead me to speak any other way.”, he gently answered back. With a pompous stance, and sneering look, the prosecutor asked, “So tell all of us, just what does it mean to be a Christian?”
In that split moment, he prayed before he spoke. He prayed that the words that he would answer would not be his, but would be those of Christ. “I am a follower of Christ, and with each breath I breathe, with each word I speak, with each movement I make, and with each step I take, I pray each is a reflection of Christ. As a Christian I have placed all my faith and my trust in the life and work that Christ brought to this world. My whole life is but a small reflection of the words He taught us, of the actions He showed us, and of the wisdom and truth He gave us. He died on the Cross so I might have life, and He rose again so I might see the promise of that life. I am a child of God because He loved me so much He came to this world to give me life that night.”
“His death paved the way for me to be that child, and His sacrifice paid the price for all my sins. This court and this jury may proclaim me guilty, but I will hold no arrest record. My sheet has already been wiped clean of every sinful thought and action I have ever committed. The Judge above all judges has already proclaimed me innocent of all my charges, and nothing this court could do to me can add one word to my guilt.”
“Before I knew Christ, my sins controlled me. The ways of the world drove me. My sins made me an enemy of my Lord. But the minute I fell at the foot of the Cross, He wrapped His arms around me, pulling me into His presence. He forever forgave me, He restored the relationship He had with me, and He eternally secured me. He showed me the truth of His ways, and He showed me a love that can only be found in those ways. He made me perfect, a perfection that is beyond all guilt.”
“He taught me that I will never know a greater pleasure than seeking to please Him. That when I put Christ first, it does not matter that I am second. He showed me that obedience to His truth does not restrict me, it opens every door of Heaven for me. He showed me that happiness can never be found in myself, but is always there when I look into His eyes. He taught me the truth about love, it is not an emotion but an action. An action that can only be seen in me when I am following His truth. And He taught me to show and share that love. To show those around me the changes I could not bring in myself, but changes than can only be seen in me because Christ is now present in my life.”
“With all I have said and so all may hear, I am guilty! I am a guilty man! I am guilty of proclaiming His truth, and I am guilty of being filled by His love. You do not have to look deeply to see that in my guilty is found that truth. In my guilty is found that love. And in my guilty is found that hope. A hope that He longs to see in each of you!”
If you were on trial today for you faith, what would the verdict be? Would your trial have to be heard over a matter of days, or could it be concluded in a matter of minutes? As the gavel fell, would the evidence the jury heard profess your guilt? Or would the lack of evidence leave the jury no choice but to proclaim you innocent? As the verdict was read, would the Heavens rejoice at your guilt, or would the world smirk at your innocence? With each day, I pray the Lord and the world finds me nothing short of being undeniably GUILTY!
Praying the day will come when you are proclaimed guilty! 